The spy balloon scientist pulling the strings in China

A Chinese scientist linked to the spy balloon that tracked across the United States last week has also played a crucial role in Beijing’s near-space programme. Back in 2017, Wu Zhe launched an airship that reached 65,000ft and two years later he worked on another that flew around the world at the same altitude, including over the USA.

Mr Wu is involved in at least three of the six organisations sanctioned by Washington for their role in China’s aerial surveillance programme.

Beijing has insisted that what the United States suspects was a spy balloon flying at 55,000ft over the US was actually a weather balloon that went off course.

But Washington says it was part of Beijing’s surveillance programme against the West.

The incident has increased tensions between China and the USA.

It has also focused attention on China’s work, which has been going on for decades, to develop high-altitude balloons for scientific and military purposes.

Mr Wu is a member of the Chinese Communist Party, and a professor of aeronautic science and engineering at Beihang University.

According to his official biography, he serves on the science and technology commission of the general armaments department for the People’s Liberation Army, advises the Aviation Industry Corporation of China, a state-owned consortium of aircraft manufacturers, and leads a group on stealth technology.

The Times reports that in recent years his work has focused on near-space aircraft, which the Chinese military thinks can fill a “vast vacuum” between the realms of planes and satellites.

Back in 2018 the official military newspaper said: “When carrying out strategic and tactical missions, near-space aircraft has unparalleled advantages over conventional aircraft.”

The Chinese military thinks that the near-space aircraft will be able to evade attacks from the ground while being able to strike targets on the ground and spacecraft.

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Mr Wu said: “This is the first time that mankind is flying a stratospheric airship around the globe at the altitude of 20,000 metres and using aerodynamic controls.”

Yang Yongqiang, who worked on the project with Mr Wu, said that a stratospheric airship had unique advantages over planes and satellites.

They said it was suitable for in-air reconnaissance because it could capture higher-resolution images than satellites and could conduct longer-term observations than planes.

Mr Wu founded a company in 2004 called the Eagles Men Aviation Science and Technology Group Co and last year it became involved in the stratospheric aircraft business, with the aim of setting up a near-space network of powered airships to provide “high-quality, low-cost near-space data services”.